When during the meetings in Strasbourg and Kiel (in April 2009) the leaders of NATO decided to start discussions on a new strategic concept of NATO, nobody expected easy agreements. Nevertheless all the countries of the Alliance agreed that the key goal of NATO should be the establishment of the secure political environment. To this end the Alliance shall elaborate effective measures for the elimination of threats.
So far the Baltic States were skeptical toward the EUs possibilities to ensure collective security. By requiring to enhance Europes solidarity in the sphere of foreign, security and defense policy, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia did not consider the EU security and defense policy a reliable instrument; moreover, complicated relations with eastern neighbors made the above countries count on NATO. At the end of this year the Lisbon Treaty was ratified. Lets have a closer look at this issue.
The stage of discussions among the experts preparing proposals for the NATO strategic concept has come to an end; the stage of consultations in the capitals of the Alliance states has commenced. Afterward they will have to identify the most relevant future threats, NATOs tasks in combating these threats and the ways for increasing the Alliances effectiveness etc.
The recently criticized Lithuanias diplomacy could remind that in principle it was its initiative to join the EU efforts in order to stop increasing the number of states not respecting the territorial integrity of Georgia, to start the dialogue between the EU and Belarus, to enhance the political development of the Eastern Partnership and to accelerate the financial and political assistance to Moldova.
President Dalia Grybauskaitė urged NATO several times to elaborate the defense plan for the Baltic States. However, according to Secretary General of NATO A.F. Rasmussen, who has recently paid a visit to Lithuania, even if there is no specific defense plan, the Baltic States shall be protected pursuant to the collective defense principles, specified in the Article 5 of the Washington Treaty. Do we really need an individual defense plan and will it increase our security?
Sinikka Hurskainen, Rapporteur on the political situation in Belarus of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) has arrived in Minsk for collecting information, for meeting with people and for discussing the situation in the country.
Belarus is dealing with the issue concerning the acquisition of the antiaircraft-missile complex C-400 from Russia, reported to the BELTA correspondent Major-General Igor Azarionok, the Commander of the military air forces and ABM of Belarus.
Journalists of the Kaliningrad newspaper Страж Балтики (Guard of the Baltics the official publication of the Baltic Fleet) have disclosed certain specific details about the naval exercise of maritime forces, which were carried out in the Baltic Sea in June 2010.
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The stage of discussions among the experts preparing proposals for the NATO strategic concept has come to an end; the stage of consultations in the capitals of the 
The recently criticized Lithuanias diplomacy could remind that in principle it was its initiative to join the EU efforts in order to stop increasing the number of states not respecting the territorial integrity of Georgia, to start the dialogue between the EU and Belarus, to enhance the political development of the Eastern Partnership and to accelerate the financial and political assistance to Moldova.
President Dalia Grybauskaitė urged NATO several times to elaborate the defense plan for the 
